man of science knew all the circumstances that had chequered Lauriston’s life since he disregarded that warning, he would indeed think that his sinister prophecy had been amply fulfilled. The interview was a short one. The doctor affected to have no recollection of either of his patients until George followed him out of the room, and stood face to face with him on the landing. “You remember me, doctor, I suppose,” he said in a rather shamefaced way. “Perfectly.” “The first time you met me you were kind enough to read me a sermon. You might read me one to more purpose now.” “More purpose! No. You can read your own sermon now, and I come to my proper function, that of curing the results of the acts my warning could not save you from.” “If you knew the whole story, doctor, you would hardly blame me.” “I don’t blame you. How can I blame conduct which brings me a patient? If all men were wise, we poor medicine men might go sweep crossings.” “But, doctor, if I had been a wiser man I should have been a worse one.” “Not necessarily. And it shows no more virtue than wisdom to throw up the sponge when you are beaten by Fortune at the first round.” George reddened. “First and last round too, isn’t it, doctor? Come, tell me honestly how long you give me to live.” Dr. Bannerman looked at him steadily. “If you remain mooning about here, hovering along like a moth in the sunshine, brooding over things which are past and beyond remedy, I give you a year. If you buckle to, make yourself new interests in life, start on a new career, and get new air into your lungs and new thoughts into your brain, I give you any time from ten years to five-and-twenty.” George instinctively drew himself up into a more martial attitude. “And my wife?” he asked with fresh interest and eagerness. “I give her as long as she has a strong heart and a brave arm to take care of her.” The young man turned his eyes away with a new light burning in them. At last he said with a tremor in his voice: “You would not deceive us about this, of course, just to keep us lingering on a little longer?” “Not a bit of it. You are both suffering from severe shock to the nervous system, and because each of you thought you were going to lose the other, neither has had the energy or the desire to pull round. You besides have a weak lung, and I tell you frankly you would not make her majesty such a smart young officer again. But a man of your intelligence must have other resources.” George saw by the foregoing speech that very little of his history during the past year was unknown to the doctor. On the whole, this knowledge made him feel easier. “I think I could write,” said he reflectively. “I have already given myself some sort of training for it, and if only all my ideas did not seem to be locked up somewhere out of my reach, I think I could express them at least intelligibly.”